GM may make moves for right price
It’s possible Lack or Bieksa could be on their way out of town
Jim Benning has heard about the fan petition to retain Eddie Lack, has heard from his peers who are kicking the tires hard on both of his available goalies, and is waiting to see the first trade domino fall before or when the NHL draft starts Friday.
The Vancouver Canucks general manager has also heard a level of interest in Kevin Bieksa and while he said Thursday that he has yet to approach the defenceman about waiving his no-trade clause, the heat on that situation has been turned up as much as moving a goaltender.
“We haven’t approached or asked any players to waive their no-trade clauses, but that’s not to say over the course of the day (Thursday) or tomorrow morning (Friday) that we won’t,” said Benning.
Read what you want into that, but it’s not hard to imagine the dropping of hints or painting a franchise picture that a 34-year-old defenceman like Bieksa, who is a $4.6-million US salary cap hit in the final year of his deal, isn’t part of a plan to get younger and better.
And if you’re Bieksa, why stay where you may not be wanted? Why not carve out a wish list of preferred destinations and move on?
Bieksa could fetch a second- or third-round draft choice from a young club such as Colorado or Buffalo looking for a veteran presence, and that’s part of the big franchise picture here.
Benning wants to recoup secondand third-round choices surrendered in, respectively, the Sven Baertschi acquisition and Ryan Kesler swap, and it’s why Lack and Jacob Markstrom have been front-burner issues for weeks because of their marketability — especially Lack.
“There’s probably one other goalie (Cam Talbot) and once he moves, the market kind of opens up a bit,” said Benning.
“If that (Lack) is the way we decide to go, I could get criticized, but that’s part of the job and there’s nothing I could do about that. We want to keep a veteran goalie and a big part of last year is that we had two good goalies and Ryan (Miller) is a proven No. 1.”
And 34 and on the books for two more years at $6 million annually.
“We have to make a hard decision on the other two guys,” added Benning. “Part of it is going to be based on who we think has the most upside and fits in the salary-cap situation.
“We don’t have to move either one of them — we have until the start of the year.
“But I don’t think with all the interest we have been getting in them that it’s going to be a problem.”
The problem is the return on Talbot and that could work in Benning’s favour. The New York Rangers backup has piqued interest in Edmonton, Buffalo, San Jose, Dallas and Calgary because of a year remaining on his contract at a palatable $1.45 million, and the manner in which he performed when Henrik Lundqvist was sidelined by injury.
Talbot went 21-9-4, with a 2.21 goals-against average and .926 save percentage.
That’s marketable, but the Rangers have upped the ante and are seeking a first-round draft choice in return.
That’s why you get head-scratching from the rabid fan base in Vancouver. In their eyes, Lack is just as good as Talbot, so why let him go?
Both goalies are 27 and Lack’s $1.15-million cap hit in the final year of his deal is reasonable, especially if you believe he’s your starter and are willing to negotiate a fair long-term extension.
Lack went 18-13-4 with a 2.45 GAA. and .921 percentage this season, and looked comfortable when Miller suffered a knee injury.
But this isn’t about emotion. It’s business. There will be a secondary market when Talbot is traded and Benning has to believe that Lack is worth more than a second-round pick. But he might not get that.
“If it’s a pick we value, there’s good depth in the draft, and if we can recoup a pick with a good player, we’ll look at that,” added Benning.
“We like a lot of players who are rated in the second round and it’s one of those years with good depth through the second and into the third round.”
A second-round pick for Lack is more than the Canucks could command for the 25-year-old Markstrom, an outstanding AHL stopper who has yet to show consistency at the NHL level.
Robin Lehner of the Ottawa Senators, 23, is drumming up interest more for two years left on his deal at $2.225 million annually than his 9-12-3 record, 3.02 GAA. and .905 save percentage.
Factor in a new cap ceiling of $71.4 million, which isn’t as high as some GMs expected, and more than prospects will become the focus this weekend. Players could be moved to get cap-compliant.
“I could see (Friday) being an active day,” said Benning.
Benning said the player with the biggest upside is the focus with the 23rd overall pick and the club is confident it will land someone it covets.
“It’s going to be a player who we can develop into a top-six forward or topfour defenceman,” he said.
That could be a lot of players. There are defencemen of interest, including Thomas Chabot of the QMJHL; and attractive forwards, including North Vancouver-bred Jansen Harkins of the Prince George Cougars.